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wtf is dobby?

jmpews/dobby — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-06-26

★ 4,718C++Audience · developerComplexity · 4/5Setup · hard

TL;DR

A lightweight, cross-platform hook framework that lets developers intercept and redirect function calls in running programs on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux without modifying the original binary.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((dobby))
    What it does
      Function interception
      Call redirection
      Runtime patching
    Platforms
      iOS and Android
      Windows and macOS
      Linux
    Architectures
      ARM and ARM64
      X86 and X86-64
    Use cases
      Security research
      Debugging tools
      Testing with mocks

Code map

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filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Intercept system API calls in an iOS or Android app to add logging or modify behavior during security research.

REASON 2

Build a debugging tool that transparently wraps function calls to track arguments and return values at runtime.

REASON 3

Test how an application behaves when specific functions are redirected to return controlled mock data.

What's in the stack?

C++ARM64ARMX86X86-64

How it stacks up

jmpews/dobbymelonds-emu/melondsydb-platform/ydb
Stars4,7184,7154,722
LanguageC++C++C++
Setup difficultyhardmoderatehard
Complexity4/52/55/5
Audiencedevelopergeneralops devops

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · hard Time to first run · 1h+

Requires a compiled build matched to the target architecture and OS, the README is minimal and points to a separate docs folder for usage details.

Wtf does this do

Dobby is a hook framework for software developers working at a low level. A hook framework is a library that lets you intercept function calls in a running program and redirect them to your own code, without modifying the original binary. This is useful for debugging, testing, security research, and building tools that sit transparently between an application and its underlying functions. The library is written to be small and modular. It works across several major operating systems: Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. It also supports multiple processor architectures, including X86, X86-64, ARM, and ARM64, which covers most desktop, server, and mobile environments in common use today. The README itself is very short and does not describe setup steps, API usage, or supported features in detail. It points to a separate compilation guide in the docs folder and to the releases page for downloading pre-built library files. A list of credits names several other open-source projects the library draws on, including the Frida instrumentation toolkit and the MinHook library for Windows. Contact and community links are provided for a Telegram account and a group chat if you want to ask questions or follow development.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Show me how to use Dobby to hook a function by address on ARM64 Android and redirect it to my own handler function.
Prompt 2
Using Dobby, write a hook that intercepts the open() syscall on macOS and logs the file path before calling through to the real function.
Prompt 3
How do I compile Dobby for iOS and integrate the resulting static library into an Xcode project?
Prompt 4
Show me a minimal Dobby example on Windows x86-64 that hooks a function, inspects its arguments, then calls the original.

Frequently asked questions

wtf is dobby?

A lightweight, cross-platform hook framework that lets developers intercept and redirect function calls in running programs on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux without modifying the original binary.

What language is dobby written in?

Mainly C++. The stack also includes C++, ARM64, ARM.

How hard is dobby to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated hard, with roughly 1h+ to a first successful run.

Who is dobby for?

Mainly developer.

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